collins



UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIGE.

M. H. COLLINS, OF CHELSEA, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNORl TO HIMSELF AND IVM. H. HOLLAND, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT iN ROTARY STEAM-ENGINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 58,602, dated October 9, 1866.

To all whom tmay concern:

Be it known that I, Myer-MEL HENRY CoL- LINs, of Chelsea, iu the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improved Rotary Steam-Engine 5 and l do hereby declare the same to be fully described in the following specification, and represented in the accompanying drawings, of which- Figure l is a top view, Fig. 2 a longitudinal section, Fig. 3 a transverse section, and Fig. 4 a horizontal section, ofit. Fig. 5 is au inner side-view of the iiy-wheel cam for operating the sliders or steam abutments or gates, to be hereinafter described.

This rotary engine is somewhat analogous to the well-known Galloway-rotary engine, as described on pages 283 to 295 ot' a work published in 1836, and entitled History and Progress of the Steam-Engine: by Elijah Galloway, Civil Engineer.77 lthough the general principle of operation of the two engines is the same, they differ materially in their construction, and it is on thesev differences that my invention is based.

In my improved engine I employ' two rotary pistons and three sliders or movable steunabutments, which, for the sake of brevity, I term gates, whereas in Galloways engine there is but one piston and two gates--t-hat is, instead of employing two gates to each of my pistons, I make use of an odd number of gates, viz., three to two pistons. This arrangement enables me to apply the steam simultaneously on opposite sides of the shaft of the engine, and to counterbalance one piston by another, whereby the engine is caused to work smoother and with less liability of wear of parts. Furthermore, I form in the piston-hub two steam-chambers, with steampassages leading out of them through the outer end and the circumference of each. These hub-chambers communicate with the valve-chest by means of a small axial chamber and a conduit formed in each of the ends of the cylinder. Other changes or improvements will be hereinafter explained.

Another great advantage of my construction of rotary engine over that of Galloway is that I dispense with all valves as used by him except that of the valvechest.

In the drawings, A denotes the supportingframe of the engine. B is the cylinder, whose internal transverse section has the form as exhibited in the drawings.

C is the driving-shaft, which goes through the cylinder axially and carries a fly-Wheel, D, which may be formed to answer the purposes of a pulley or band-wheel. Ou the inner face of this wheel is a grooved caln, E, shaped as shown in Fig. 5. This cam is to aid in operating' the gates, parts a a of it being concentric and parts b b of it being eccentric to the axis of the driving-shaft.

A cylindrical drinn, F, is fixed to the shaft C, and arranged within the case or cylinder B conceutrically with respect to such shaft and cylinder. The interior space of this drum is divided into two chambers, C H, by means of a cross-partition, I, going through its middle.

Cylindrical extensions or journals K K from the ends of the drum enter corresponding' openings L L, leading iuto small cylindrical chambers M M forlned in the two heads N N of the cylinder.` A series of openings, c c c, is made in the end of each of the extensions K, in order that the chambers Cr and H may freely comlnunicate with the chambersM M. From each chamber M a conduit or port, d, passes to a valve-chest, O, fixed on the periphery of the cylinder. The said valve-chest has au induction-pipe, c, leading into it and an eductionpassage, f, leading from it, and, besides, within it is a slide-valve, g, provided with a rod, 7L, by which it may be moved so as to cause the steam to enter either of the ports d d andescape by the other and through the eduction port or passagef. The said slide-valve is for the purpose 'of effecting the reversing of the movementof the engine.

A packing-ring, t', to be forced outward either by the steam or by springs k L" acting against it, is applied to each end of the drum or hub F and in a correspondingchannelformed therein concentrically with the driving-shaft. This packing-rin g rests against the contiguous inner face of the cylinder and serves to prevent the escape of steam from the spaces between the pistons and the gates. c2 a2 a-re small packing-rings, which serve to prevent the escape of steam by the journals or parts against which they operate.

There extend from the periphery of the drum F two semicircular projections or pistons, P l), each having a semicircular packing, Z, applied to its periphery and in a groove made therein, the saine to be pressed outward by springs or -by the action of steam. 0n opposite sides ot' each of these pistons and close to them there are two passages, m fnz, which go through the rim ot' the drum F, one ot' such passages leading out of one and the other out, ot the other of its two chambers. Fig. 6 is an edge view of one of the pistons with such passages.

The three gates which co-operate with the pistons are represented at E, R1, and R2. Each has a spindle, Ol, extending from it. Furthermore, each gate is arranged in a slot made radially in the periphery of the cylinder and open ing into a gate case or bonnet, S, fixed to and extending from such peripheryin manner as exhibited in the drawings. The spindle goes through and projects beyond the gate case or bonnet, such case being so made as to enable the gate to be entirely withdrawn from the space or path in the cylinder in which the pistons revolve. Furthermore, that part of each gatespindle which extends beyond the gate-case goes through a yoke or bow, p, and has two springs, q r, applied tov it, one being above and the other being below the bow. They rest against such bow in manner as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3. To the extremity of each of these yokes two arms, s s, are jointed, such arms being projected from one of three horizontal shafts, t t t, which are supported in bearings in the frame A, and are arranged as represented in the drawings. Each ofthe said shafts has a crank, a, projecting from one end of it, and being provided with a friction-roller, n, to operate with the cam in the lower side of the ily-wheel. The arrangem entof these cranks and rollers is exhibited in Figs. l and 5.

Vhen the above-described rotary engine is in operation the steam will tlow into one of the chambers G H, and by its peripheral opening will escape from it into the cylinder, and, acting against the pistons and gates, will cause the drum and the driving-shaft to be revolved. Each of the gates will bc raised at the proper time for the piston to pass it, after which it will be closed down upon the drum, in order that the steam may act against it and the piston, to propel the latter. The waste-steam will tlow from the cylinder through the peripheral opening of the other of the chambers G H, from whence it will be discharged into the chamber w ot the slide-valve, and from thence escape by the exhaustpassage f.

, The purpose of the longer spring, q, applied to each of the yokes, is to enable the force which the yoke receives from the cam to gradually operate in overcoming the pressure of the steam, tending to hold the gate down. As soon as this pressure is overcome the spring, by being relieved, will suddenly lift the gate, so as to allow ot' the passage ofthe piston, and will accomplish. this much quicker than it can be done by the cam. The lower spring, r, serves to relieve the yoke from the upward blow which it would otherwise receive from the lower nut,

What I claim in the above-described rotary engine as my invention or improvements is as follows:

1. The combination and arrangement of the chambered drum F, made substantially as described, with the two pistons and their gates and ports dd, arranged in the case or cylinder, as specified. y

2. The arrangement and combination ot the springs q r with each of the yokes p, the same being as and for the purpose specified.

3. The construction of each pistou and that part of the case against which it operates, viz., curved on their peripheries, substantially as represented, in combination with the cylindrical drum, arranged with respect to them, as speciiied.

M. H. COLLINS.

Witnesses:l

1t. H. EDDY, F. P. HALE, Jr. 

